November 27, 2012

Housing and dining services announces residence hall occupancy limit

Beginning with the 2013-14 academic year, students who have lived or have been eligible to live on K-State’s campus for six or more semesters — as of spring 2013 — will be unable to preference a space in the university’s residence halls. These students will remain eligible for two other on-campus living options.

In order to meet increasing campus housing demand from incoming freshmen, housing and dining services will implement this occupancy limit to reduce the number of upperclassmen who may return to the residence halls. These students are encouraged to consider another on-campus location — such as Jardine Apartments — instead. In addition to apartment-style housing, Jardine offers the living community an environment within the apartment complex that provides a meal plan, furnished bedrooms, higher staffing levels and programs geared toward undergraduates, similar to the residence halls. It operates under the same terms and conditions of the residence hall contract.

“Jardine offers benefits similar to those enjoyed by students living in the residence halls,” said Derek Jackson, director of housing and dining services. “The fact that we’re able to offer an equally attractive option in exchange for a space in our residence halls makes us confident that the implementation of this change will benefit all involved, not just students who are new to campus.”

K-State does not require freshmen to live in its residence halls, yet these facilities have traditionally been a popular choice due to the award-winning conveniences and services they provide such as access to dining service, tutoring programs, on-site laundry facilities, leadership opportunities and more. The occupancy limit has been introduced as an effort to offer these benefits to as many students as possible.

To further address growing housing and dining demand, the department has announced plans to add living space for an additional 400 students. The planning process for the project is scheduled to begin in February 2013 and a completion goal of August 2014 has been set. The project will be funded with a combination of bond funds, private money and operational reserves. The bond will be repaid with student fees.